Any news on a new expansion yet?

[Achaiah191]

Topic...I would like them to announce a new expansion sometime soon, anyone heard anything?

[Sasamichan]

There is no expansion planned anytime soon. Unless you're talking about PSU portable, which is NOT an expansion.

[Achaiah191]

No, I wasn't talking about PSU portable.

[Sasamichan]

No, I wasn't talking about PSU portable.

Its not an expansion, just a totally new game.

[Macras]

... Impatient much? AoI was only just released in november of 2007. There was about a year inbetween PSU v1 and AoI. it is currently only May. meaning you have about 3-4 more months to wait for information to possibly even surface

[Nuclearranger]

There haven't even been rumors although the *5 year plan* they mentioned better include one or two more expantions

[Ken_Silver]

Yeah, nothing on a new expansion. And I wouldn't expect to hear anything about a new one until the Story mode of PSU finished Episode 3.

Think about it. We didn't hear any news of an expansion until the US/EU servers got close to finishing Episode 2 online.

And since we are at Episode 3 Chapter 3 and the JP severs are at (guessing) Episode 3 Chapter 6, we have a long ways to go.

Can't expand until we are done with what we have, 'eh?

[Achaiah191]

Its not an expansion, just a totally new game.

...I know. I was just wondering if an expansion was announced.
I didn't ask about PSU portable. It is pretty obvious that PSU PORTABLE is not an expansion to PSU for PC/360/PS2.
Sorry for the misunderstanding.

[Sasamichan]

...I know. I was just wondering if an expansion was announced.
I didn't ask about PSU portable. It is pretty obvious that PSU PORTABLE is not an expansion to PSU for PC/360/PS2.
Sorry for the misunderstanding.

Oops, I read your 2nd post wrong. Thought you said "I was talking about PSU portable". Read wasn't as was. ^^;

[SonicTMP]

If nothing else an expansion could fix the fps issue on ps2 and memory leak on xbox. Though I find it hard to belevie what equipment we don't have yet but is listed in the perfect bible will hold us all the way to 200...

[DjDragoon]

If players are lucky, it usually takes a year or 2 for expansions on MMOs. I think it was like once a year for Lineage II when it was in full swing. I just hope there's more content in AoI then what we've been shown so far. More levels that haven't been unlocked yet would be nice before the expansion is no longer fresh. I refuse to believe that this is all that AoI has to offer as far as new content, besides the upcoming classes.

[pikachief]

i think the JP has like 4 or more missions than we do now :P

[Ken_Silver]

In light of all the expansion talk, how about a patch that gives the PC version voices?!?

I mean, seriously. Can Sonic Team walk and chew bubblegum at the same time?

They have a list of grieveances that stretches along the hudson river. A loyal fan is a loyal fan, but SEGA... we are not Blind!!! Fix some of the issues you have now!

To be honest, I don't trust them with an expansion. I mean to them, an expansion equals Beta version of the expansion in which they add to it a few months at a time.

[DjDragoon]

It's kinda hard for them to distribute expansions as well, imo. Unlike the PS2 verison of FFXI, PSU doesn't make use of the HDD so Sega would have to release new discs every time. Don't really know if this is a huge issue, but it was really easy just to download any new content directly to the system with FFXI.

[F-Gattaca]

I wonder--how do they plan to accomodate ever-expanding stuff with the PS2? Will they eventually require use of the HDD? A lot of my friends have said it was both a brilliant and terrible decision for PSU to be released on the PS2 ... putting aside the fact they've tried to emulate gradual patching of content like other MMOs by unlocking what data there is on the disk for Network Mode (if I had a nickel for every complaint and snark I've heard about that ... ) ... the PS2 in general has really limited the options available to them.

[Weeaboolits]

I wonder--how do they plan to accomodate ever-expanding stuff with the PS2? Will they eventually require use of the HDD? A lot of my friends have said it was both a brilliant and terrible decision for PSU to be released on the PS2 ... putting aside the fact they've tried to emulate gradual patching of content like other MMOs by unlocking what data there is on the disk for Network Mode (if I had a nickel for every complaint and snark I've heard about that ... ) ... the PS2 in general has really limited the options available to them.That's probably why they're so slow to release it, but they can't very well drop PS2 (thankfully for me), since it's apparently the primary platform for this game in Japan.

[Shinko]

I wish... we still have a lot of time before any new expansion. but when it do come believe me it be hard to not know of it. It'll be all of this site talking about it

[jobber]

They could release the next expansion for the PS3. That would take care of the hard drive issue. I'm not sure if it's possible to transfer a PS2 file save to a PS3 file save. Since it would probably be over a year before we get info, that would give the PS2 users time to get a PS3. If you can't afford a PS3, you can still play AOI on PS2.

[Coldbrand]

Does the 360 version have voices? Also, what's this about a memory leak?

[AerisZeal]

There is a new expansion! Phantasy Star Universe: Ambition of the -lines!

"In addition to the fifteen available -lines in the game, we've added an astounting 136 more! Further more we've added small spherical objects to lob at these new -lines to collect them!"

Here's me in the Beta with one of the new -lines,
http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q268/JamesZeal/Things%20that%20are%20less%20random/Bulbaline.jpg

[Uber_Noob]

Dunno about an Expansion but AoI was known shortly after the release of V1.So maybe there will be maybe there wont be.Besides PSO on it's own isnt a very large game if you consider how big PSU is and didnt it last for many years?

[WHlTEKNIGHT]

I think a sequal is more likely than another expansion

[DjDragoon]

They could release the next expansion for the PS3. That would take care of the hard drive issue. I'm not sure if it's possible to transfer a PS2 file save to a PS3 file save. Since it would probably be over a year before we get info, that would give the PS2 users time to get a PS3. If you can't afford a PS3, you can still play AOI on PS2.

Ummm... everything is saved server side anyways so all you'd have to do is enter your net ID on the PS3 to connect.

[Lyric]

We haven't even received all of the content from v.1 yet. Taking that into consideration with the fixes that need to be made, I can wait for an expansion.

ಠ_ಠ

[stalkernight]

I cant see there being another expansion, I think that they might just call it a day with PSU and continue to support it until the next game.
Big problem with PSU was always that it came too late in the PS2s cycle and it was always just a port game on the 360.

Im not sure aswell but I think the story would end with episode 3 maybe since alot of things are done in trilogys these days lol.

[Kylie]

I think a sequal is more likely than another expansion
I would normally agree, but the argument about how we have loads of more weapons to get that not even JP has yet, and that there aren't any enemies to pose a good fight to LV200 characters (if that is our end cap), is starting to make me contemplate the thought of one more expansion. However, the disc space they'd have left to work with and other issues would make a sequel a more logical choice. But either is fine with me; I just want something new!

[Criss]

We will most likely get all remaining chapters of the Ep3 story before we get mention of the next expansion. I'd say somewhere around the end of 2008.

[Mikura]

I really hope if and when they do make an expansion, they'll release it for PS2, 360, "and" PS3. Having PS3 owners in on the game would really help boost the community number, not to mention give console peeps like me some better graphics to look at. (My PC's been acting weird for a long time, that's the only reason I tend to avoid PC games, PSU included). I honestly don't know why they never did it with AotI. Can't be that hard to port it over to PS3, and it'd only mean more money for them.

[Proff]

It'd be nice if they'd fix the PS2 version so that certain line shields like Rabol Rappy would actually have a non-default block animation.

[Kinako78]

There is a new expansion! Phantasy Star Universe: Ambition of the -lines!

"In addition to the fifteen available -lines in the game, we've added an astounting 136 more! Further more we've added small spherical objects to lob at these new -lines to collect them!"

Here's me in the Beta with one of the new -lines,
http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q268/JamesZeal/Things%20that%20are%20less%20random/Bulbaline.jpg

Oh, come on! Tell me I'm not the only one who found this humorous! :p

[RemiusTA]

... Impatient much? AoI was only just released in november of 2007. There was about a year inbetween PSU v1 and AoI. it is currently only May. meaning you have about 3-4 more months to wait for information to possibly even surface


AotI has nothing else to offer. They really didnt add as much as we believe, and even if they did they are holding back at least 40% of it all.

SEGA's approach to PSU is whats doing all the damage to its sells.

[PrinceBrightstar]

Expansionc will combine gurhal and ragol stories. maybe...

[Ryna]

No expansion has been announced and I'm not really expecting any for the current line of games for a couple of reasons. First, we knew about Ambition of the Illuminus on the first day of JP PSU's release. There hasn't been any hint of continuing PSU past the PSP release yet. Second, when looking through the address space for NPCs and weapons, Sonic Team didn't leave any big data gaps in AotI. All of the data gaps from PSU were filled in with AotI data in the expansion. Finally, I doubt most people will want to continue playing by the time we reach AotI's end-game material. At the moment, it looks like we'll eventually receive a level 200 cap and 15* weapons. The promise of a level 300 cap and 20* weapons seems very lame.

If anything, I would expect a sequel to the next logical iteration for the series.

[NegaTsukasa]

I beleive new lobbies might be avilable in the next one. I been looking up on another official PSU site JUST FOR PSU and AoI.
prefferably two or three new lobbies.
A seaside looking one and a foresty one and some other one. I think these pictures might be the only pre-release considering these are not on AoI but look like they have been programmed into a PSU game.

http://phantasystaruniverse.com/image/illuminus/aoti_lobby_1.jpg
http://phantasystaruniverse.com/image/illuminus/aoti_lobby_2.jpg
http://phantasystaruniverse.com/image/illuminus/aoti_lobby_4.jpg

this is them. though I could be wrong on this. It seems very likely. I dont go online so I can't tell if you guys have seen this in AoI online. But I highly doubt it.

also. here is the site link in which I found them...
http://phantasystaruniverse.com/game_lobby.php

read this section of the site for more info.

This is about as much help as I can offer if its any at all for a pre-release/sneak peak sort of thing

[NegaTsukasa]

No expansion has been announced and I'm not really expecting any for the current line of games for a couple of reasons. First, we knew about Ambition of the Illuminus on the first day of JP PSU's release. There hasn't been any hint of continuing PSU past the PSP release yet. Second, when looking through the address space for NPCs and weapons, Sonic Team didn't leave any big data gaps in AotI. All of the data gaps from PSU were filled in with AotI data in the expansion. Finally, I doubt most people will want to continue playing by the time we reach AotI's end-game material. At the moment, it looks like we'll eventually receive a level 200 cap and 15* weapons. The promise of a level 300 cap and 20* weapons seems very lame.

If anything, I would expect a sequel to the next logical iteration for the series.

Wouldn't that suck if Sega just left it as is? some games have been known to just stop in the middle of something and not continue.

I highly doubt it though. I trust Sega alote and I know there will be a sequal. there is just to many HINTS around this site, and don't forget to mention the stuff I looked up and posted here in my last post with the lobbies. Plus other things I've seen that is listed but not in the game.

So ya. Logical hints here and there are the only thing we have at the moment it seems.
Though illuminouse is still kind of an early game. So maybe new stuff will be added from what we have already seen that is not in the game but part of it.

It's all very questionable right now.

[Yusaku_Kudou]

The expansion was known before the domestic US release of original PSU with name, box art, and all. I posted the news on IGN Boards in I believe summer '06.

[lokey013]

Not sure how long PSU will last but I would love a few more expansions down the line....either that or just make the graphics more next gen =P

[redroses]

I beleive new lobbies might be avilable in the next one. I been looking up on another official PSU site JUST FOR PSU and AoI.
prefferably two or three new lobbies.
A seaside looking one and a foresty one and some other one. I think these pictures might be the only pre-release considering these are not on AoI but look like they have been programmed into a PSU game.

http://phantasystaruniverse.com/image/illuminus/aoti_lobby_1.jpg
http://phantasystaruniverse.com/image/illuminus/aoti_lobby_2.jpg
http://phantasystaruniverse.com/image/illuminus/aoti_lobby_4.jpg

this is them. though I could be wrong on this. It seems very likely. I dont go online so I can't tell if you guys have seen this in AoI online. But I highly doubt it.

also. here is the site link in which I found them...
http://phantasystaruniverse.com/game_lobby.php

read this section of the site for more info.

This is about as much help as I can offer if its any at all for a pre-release/sneak peak sort of thing

We have all of those lobbies already in online mode.
The first one is called paracabana coast (not sure at all on this one)
The second one is the Pavillion of Air: top
and the last one is the Habirao Village, I think.

So yeah, no hoping for them to be new =(

[NegaTsukasa]

We have all of those lobbies already in online mode.
The first one is called paracabana coast (not sure at all on this one)
The second one is the Pavillion of Air: top
and the last one is the Habirao Village, I think.

So yeah, no hoping for them to be new =(
Oh! ok then. Aw. it quite sucks to a hard extent they are not offline. -_-
I was hoping to a major extent that I would be able to go to those offline.

thanks again though.

But still, there are hints floating around. minus the lobbies! XP

[stalkernight]

I really believe that PSP will be the last product released of the PSU series simply because apart from online play it has improved on everything in PSU.
I think PSP is segas way of saying this is the best we can do with PSU enjoy.

Another expansion would be incredibly hard to find aswell by the time it will be released, since many stores by that time will not be stocking new PS2 games (many are already getting rid of there remaining stock of PS2 sections).

Sega has always been between a rock and a hard place with PSU, in japan its popular on PS2 in USA its popular on 360 so its pretty much stuck.

If they dont want the same situation happening again they need to release the next game earlier in the console cycle.

All these I think means no more expansions but a brand new game.

[Powder Keg]

Personally, I'd rather see some "completion" with this game. There is no need for another expansion...it's just not necessary.

[DjDragoon]

To tell ya tha truth, Sonic Team has been screwing up a lot since Yuji Naka left. Sonic the Hedgehog 2006, the new NiGHTS game... they really just aren't thinking things thru and are getting away with games that aren't living up to expectations. They actually milked PSO vigorously and it lasted waaay longer than I expected and have a big fanbase because of it. PSU should've been overflowing with content, but maybe I'm expecting too much out of it. I just wished they had made it a next-gen game so it could've done a lot more to it.

Wow, now I'm becoming depressed. I really think that Ryna is right and they need to work on the next series of Phantasy Star games.

[NegaTsukasa]

To tell ya tha truth, Sonic Team has been screwing up a lot since Yuji Naka left. Sonic the Hedgehog 2006, the new NiGHTS game... they really just aren't thinking things thru and are getting away with games that aren't living up to expectations. They actually milked PSO vigorously and it lasted waaay longer than I expected and have a big fanbase because of it. PSU should've been overflowing with content, but maybe I'm expecting too much out of it. I just wished they had made it a next-gen game so it could've done a lot more to it.

Wow, now I'm becoming depressed. I really think that Ryna is right and they need to work on the next series of Phantasy Star games.

Well it's for certian another sequal/expansion is coming out. hopefuly I can be impressed with the next one. the only thing I was impressed with on this one is pulling back in some of the vital PSO refferences. Like the enemies, and clothing. Plus the Ragol levels which are online only and it pisses me off.
the weapons have been recovering somewhat but not by much and at a slow gradual rate.
mags are now probably extinct and a no go anymore.

I doubt they will reach the hidden charms PSO had in which makes it unique to PSU.
the least that can possibly be done is racking back all the weapons and armor styles from PSO.
And possibly add in the story 2 levels. and probably some minor stuff I didn't mention.

So ya. I hope the next game gives out even more offlin/online variety unlike now.
I was happy for this game, but there were things I expected that never happend as a true hardcore fan of PSO.
And this time I'm praying for Ragol levels in offline next expansion! >:[

[F-Gattaca]

Personally, I'd rather see some "completion" with this game. There is no need for another expansion...it's just not necessary.

Well--is it just me or is anyone getting the feeling they pulled out the ace card a bit early? Dark Falz, I mean.

Unless they have a overarching story where Dark Falz is just the beginning, and Dark Falz was that way for PSO, but traditionally ... His appearance always has a weight of finality.

I dunno, I get this feeling that, for Episode 3, they could have focused more on the aftermath of the Illuminus' meddling in the previous episode. Hearing that Howzer gets put down a few chapters ahead and that the free missions of AotI deal with mopping up Illuminus activity as we did the Endrum Collective in vanilla PSU almost feels a little too fast, especially for a long-running conspiracy whose gambit paid off and seriously sucker-punched Gurhalian civilization.

But that's just me. Maybe they really do have a plan for more expansions and have a deeper story to tell, like how Dark Falz and the SEED are connected, and don't plan to tie that up with AotI. Who knows.

[Kanore]

ROFL, another expansion? C'mon, do you really want to waste more of your money at once when ST still hasn't displayed any sign of caring for the western players? Stop acting like sheep.

And besides, seeing white, yellow, and some other colored names running around at the same time is going to be annoying. PSO stopped at yellow names with Ep 3. PSU's not good enough to 1-up PSO in that little detail either.

[F-Gattaca]

ROFL, another expansion? C'mon, do you really want to waste more of your money at once when ST still hasn't displayed any sign of caring for the western players? Stop acting like sheep.

You remind me of a certain XKCD comic.

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/rock_band.png

Moral of the story: People will continue to play a game as long as they find it fun or worth their money, and not a minute sooner.

Problems like with what happened to MAG's promised extention and the Error 065 plague have done a lot to make many feel it's no longer worth it, but there are still many others who still find worth in playing and have fun with what the game's got. They're not going to stop playing until they themselves feel there's no more fun or worth in PSU.

In other words, people like the "stop having fun" dude in that comic--and people like you who go "ROFL you're all sheep!!!1" ... You're not going to change anyone's minds. You're just making yourself look like a jerk that way. But hey, the choice is yours ...


And besides, seeing white, yellow, and some other colored names running around at the same time is going to be annoying. PSO stopped at yellow names with Ep 3. PSU's not good enough to 1-up PSO in that little detail either.

I think that would depend largely on the colors used.

[Kanore]

Oh, my bad, I completely forgot how butthurt this community gets when someone speaks the reality of a situation.

[amtalx]

Personally, I'd rather see some "completion" with this game. There is no need for another expansion...it's just not necessary.


A lot of people seem to forget that the item data for the "completion" we are all looking for isn't on the AoI disk. If you want anything higher than 13*s, you're gonna buy a new expansion at some point.

Thank you PS2!

[Zorafim]

Unless they have a overarching story where Dark Falz is just the beginning, and Dark Falz was that way for PSO, but traditionally ... His appearance always has a weight of finality.

PSIV spoilers, I suppose. You fight Dark Force three times in PSIV, and each time he's pathetically easy compared to other bosses you face.
That being considered, Fakis was the boss of EP.1. He's seen his light. Seems like Falz doesn't get as much treatment, as the mission containing is almost on the US servers and doesn't seem to be anything special. We're probably going to have a final boss that overshadows all the ones we've seen so far, that nobody is going to run anyway due to the low rewards...

[Golto]

A lot of people seem to forget that the item data for the "completion" we are all looking for isn't on the AoI disk. If you want anything higher than 13*s, you're gonna buy a new expansion at some point.

Thank you PS2!

There's already some 14* and 15* armors in JPN pc/ps2 and don't forget Puishan is 14*. I think some people are expecting too much like a 13*,14*,15* ver of every weapon type though.

[amtalx]

There's already some 14* and 15* armors in JPN pc/ps2 and don't forget Puishan is 14*. I think some people are expecting too much like a 13*,14*,15* ver of every weapon type though.


Yea, sorry about that. I wasnt very clear. I should have said that a majority of the 13*+ data isn't available yet. We'll probably get that somewhere around year 3. :disapprove:

[chaostroop3]

i whant

betterline

"a chunck of gold and dimonds that has no purpose , it just sits there looking pretty"

[Cracka_J]

ya, we got a few 13-14* items floating around, but c'mon people, there's still numerous 12* non kubarac psu items waiting for release. do you really expect another expansion when stuff from the first version still isn't released?

I expect AOI to roll on for another year. If sega decides to continue the series (remember they wanted this game to last for 5-7 years after initial release), we will get announcement of a new expansion sometime next year. Likely 80% of the AOI data should be unlocked by that time, leaving a bit of room til the expansion rolls out.

But in all seriousness, ya, I wouldn't expect anything to even be announced until like spring '09...if that. If you're expecting sooner, you're setting yourself up for major disappointment.

Really, I do hope they can PSU at that point and either kill the series or start fresh. I love PSU, but this "alternate/parallel universe" tacked on storyline bs stinks of sega fail.

Bring on Phantasy Star Online 2 plox.

[Kylie]

Oh, my bad, I completely forgot how butthurt this community gets when someone speaks the reality of a situation.
But that isn't the reality for everyone. If I really, really wanted to, I could easily find a replacement for PSU (whether it'd be a new game, or something in real life); however, I always find some reason to keep playing. I admit most of that has to do with the people I've met more so than it does with the game play (lately at least), but I still say that's worth the $10/month I pay. I do contemplate what I'll end up doing if one of the series I'm loyal to gets an MMO out though. So I do hope for a sequel or expansion - I think there's a lot of room to grow with the series -, but I'm not completely tied to the series or obligated to buy whatever they put out just because. I do what I want.

[F-Gattaca]

Oh, my bad, I completely forgot how butthurt this community gets when someone speaks the reality of a situation.

No, the reality of the situation is that people will continue to play a game as long as they find it fun. They're not sheep for doing so, and giving someone who thinks his word is law the real reality of the situation is not being "butthurt."

In other news, Kylie pretty much describes my own reasons for playing PSU.

[zandra117]

There haven't even been rumors although the *5 year plan* they mentioned better include one or two more expantions
I think the "5 year plan" that they mentioned was referring to 5 years of games relating to the PSU universe, Phantasy Star Portable being a part of that. I really dont see Phantasy Star Universe living beyond Ambition of the Illuminus. After AOTI is done with its new content sonicteam will probably continue supporting the annual online events while providing monthly new downloadable content to PSP for whatever remains of the 5 years. Then hopefully after that we will see a game worthy of successing PSO and the past PS games.

[Rescue]

I just feel that it being on the 360 it is being held back and couldve been more.... (Hate to say this) But PSO on Dreamcast and the later versions afterward you sorta knew what all they were pushing for. With this being on both PS2 and 360 I feel that the 360 is overshadowing the whole game because with it being a "next-gen" system everyone is expecting more but you have the PS2 in a way holding it back........


Anyway Im kinda to the point where we should have some type of PS game for the PS3 and/or 360 built just for those systems.... Could be the answer to all our hopes and wishes or it could be the same old tired stuff..... I feel we are almost to the point of just moving on to something different than what we have now.

[Itachi1990]

Id like to see a new planet that would be awsome!

[DjDragoon]

I just feel that it being on the 360 it is being held back and couldve been more.... (Hate to say this) But PSO on Dreamcast and the later versions afterward you sorta knew what all they were pushing for. With this being on both PS2 and 360 I feel that the 360 is overshadowing the whole game because with it being a "next-gen" system everyone is expecting more but you have the PS2 in a way holding it back........


Anyway Im kinda to the point where we should have some type of PS game for the PS3 and/or 360 built just for those systems.... Could be the answer to all our hopes and wishes or it could be the same old tired stuff..... I feel we are almost to the point of just moving on to something different than what we have now.

Reminds me of the time when they played the PSU announcement trailer at E3 and I got really excited... and then they made me raise an eyebrow when they said it'd be on PC/PS2 initially. I was REALLY looking for a next-gen Phantasy Star game from SEGA, but I realized that would be too good to be true. PSU wasn't a bad game when it was released, imo. However I would've much preferred it on PS3/PC/360 to be a true PSO successor experience. PSO was also released on the regular XBOX and it kinda disappointed when they took a step backward and released the sequel on an older system. Corse now I'm gonna hear PS2 players objecting...

[LuigiMario]

... Impatient much? AoI was only just released in november of 2007. There was about a year inbetween PSU v1 and AoI. it is currently only May. meaning you have about 3-4 more months to wait for information to possibly even surface
This website had infomation on AotI months before its release. So he is not impatient. Can't say the same about you.

[Kanore]

No, the reality of the situation is that people will continue to play a game as long as they find it fun. They're not sheep for doing so, and giving someone who thinks his word is law the real reality of the situation is not being "butthurt."

In other news, Kylie pretty much describes my own reasons for playing PSU.

So justification for continuing to play a game that is (as evidenced by everything that happened during MAG, which only acted as the peak) so poorly managed is 'having fun?' Have all the fun you want. ST's balls are still in my mouth too; I've been paying for the past few months; hell, I've paid ST their lousy subscription for so many months where I shouldn't have, including on PSO. It was all in faith that, looking at such nicely designed games, looking at games with so much potential, that ST would eventually do something really great.

MAG was about to bring life back into the community. Well, we all know (especially on PC/PS2) that if we had 5 stars throughout the event, it'd drop considerably when the event ended, but we only had the 5 stars for one day. People were fed up.

My word isn't meant to be law, it's the expression of my experiences. And they obviously haven't been good ones. I have almost no faith in Sonic Team anymore, and anything SoA will ever say has absolutely no merit. It's enough to say that I salute any person that's played online for every generation and is still here since v1 Dreamcast, because their patience - or just apathy - definitely exceeds anyone else's. The only reason I play PSU anymore is because of friends I've met from other games.

[Ryudo]

ITT Kanore doesnt know what opinions are

Personally I'm quite sure there will be another expansion
I think they're going to go for that "Battle against the Holy Light" in the end that they always said they wanted to do with PSV

[r00tabaga]

Kinore hasn't had any tail since last Valentine's Day....

[Arika]

I m sure that you won't hear any expansion new until the PSP version released first.
I don't think that they want 2 things from their company to crash each other.

[F-Gattaca]

So justification for continuing to play a game that is (as evidenced by everything that happened during MAG, which only acted as the peak) so poorly managed is 'having fun?' Have all the fun you want.

Protip: If the service is online, has reasonable latency, and not dropping your connection left and right, then you can find a way to get your money's worth out of the gameplay. If you can't, you unsubscribe and stop playing. That simple!

Error 065 was a big FUBAR. I'm not denying that. Some of my friends got hit by it, but SoA's method of fixing the problem brought them all back as well as some others who weren't paying at the time.

Having MAG postponed/cancelled is definitely a "what the hell Sonic Team," but there's still the rest of the game to play. It sure as hell wasn't the first time I've seen a promised feature/thing in an MMO get postponed or even cancelled, that's for damn sure. (It might be the first time I've seen a dev team completely screw the GM team over, though.)

Back to my point. Guess what I was doing with friends on the last day of the MAG. Frantically spamming MAG to try and get that last Pushan? Bzzt! We said "Screw MAG, things need to die" and did a system-wide tour, goofing off along the way and partying hard. We had a great time doing it, and we even got an assortment of rares.

I'm pretty sure entertainment is the fundamental point of playing a game.


ST's balls are still in my mouth too; I've been paying for the past few months; hell, I've paid ST their lousy subscription for so many months where I shouldn't have, including on PSO. It was all in faith that, looking at such nicely designed games, looking at games with so much potential, that ST would eventually do something really great.

Soooooo ... are you somehow exempt from your "witticisms" about the rest of us being "butthurt sheep" because those of us still playing find enough worth in it?

I'm well aware of how ST has handled PSO, or more specifically, PSO outside of Japan. I've had PSU since launch, too, and I'll admit that there's been times that I've wondered if it would have been wiser to've played PSU as an importer (although not knowing Japanese would've sucked HARD, so it'd be a real tossup).

But honestly? The grass isn't much greener elsewhere when it comes to both content and service. Both PSO and PSU, for all their faults, are fairly unique among MMOs as they stand. I've been playing them for what they are. Do I ponder a lot about what they can become? Sure, but I personally don't expect games to turn out exactly as I imagine them to.


MAG was about to bring life back into the community. Well, we all know (especially on PC/PS2) that if we had 5 stars throughout the event, it'd drop considerably when the event ended, but we only had the 5 stars for one day. People were fed up.

We had five stars on the first and last days of the event, actually. In the middle of all that, Error 65 knocked a lot of people out. However, the real kicker was that the timing of it was ASTRONOMICALLY bad, considering the player-run drive to drum up publicity for PSU just before the event kicked off. That, if nothing else, is the one thing about the whole affair that had my head in my hands.

I can only imagine how much screaming the SoA GMs had to do at Sega Europe over the billing server's total fluster cluck. The handling of Error 065 was an object lesson in why you do not split up responsibilities between various international branches of a company (or at least across the subsidiaries); I imagine that if billing, support staff, and GMs were all under one branch, this wouldn't have been as much of a problem as it turned out.


My word isn't meant to be law, it's the expression of my experiences.


It's enough to say that I salute any person that's played online for every generation and is still here since v1 Dreamcast, because their patience - or just apathy - definitely exceeds anyone else's. The only reason I play PSU anymore is because of friends I've met from other games.

Uh-huh. Just ooooone problem with that--you're seriously contradicting yourself here.

See--there's only so many ways you can interpret (paraphrased) words like "ROFL! You want to waste your money some more? Stop being sheep!" and "Awww, I forgot how butthurt the community is when someone speaks the reality of the situation!!1" from a man who just admitted that he still is paying for the game.

Not one of those interpretations has any room for the idea that you actually respect anyone who's played the PS MMOs from V1 until now.


I have almost no faith in Sonic Team anymore, and anything SoA will ever say has absolutely no merit.

Well, I personally have HUGE sympathy for the SoA GMs. They've gone through a ton of crap--with ST pulling a 180 and leaving them to face a hysterical mob that wants to use them as a scapegoat. I wasn't there for the SEGA SUPPORT that occured soon after the announcement that MAG would be postponed, but a friend was.

I don't think many people would have the skin to stand in front of a rabid mob that absolutely hates them and wants nothing more than to tear them all sorts of new ones in the process. I know I wouldn't.

Given how ST has screwed them over, no, we can't trust that their announcements aren't going to be reversed due to ST's whims. However, that doesn't mean I think that listening to them is of absolutely no worth--if nothing else, the GMs have been honest about their experience with the whole affair. They were not happy about what ST did to them, and they admitted that. They didn't just go along with ST's reversal--they let ST know just what was going to happen. Of course, ST doesn't have to face the fire for their decisions.

That they at least have been trying to do things right for us is a helluva lot better than GMs who could care less.

[LuigiMario]

ya, we got a few 13-14* items floating around, but c'mon people, there's still numerous 12* non kubarac psu items waiting for release. do you really expect another expansion when stuff from the first version still isn't released?

This happened before. What makes you think it won't happen again?

[Kanore]

ITT Kanore doesnt know what opinions are

Did what I say really pass off as 'THIS IS FACT RAMBLE RAMBLE RAMBLE' to you?

And Gattaca, fine. I can't say much about your ideas and sympathies to ST. But,



Soooooo ... are you somehow exempt from your "witticisms" about the rest of us being "butthurt sheep" because those of us still playing find enough worth in it?

....

See--there's only so many ways you can interpret (paraphrased) words like "ROFL! You want to waste your money some more? Stop being sheep!" and "Awww, I forgot how butthurt the community is when someone speaks the reality of the situation!!1" from a man who just admitted that he still is paying for the game.


What's wrong with calling myself a sheep and a sucker for ST? I'm dealing with the half-a-game they're giving me. Can I not say something about how the amount of content and support we're getting doesn't live up to the money we're shelling out? People who criticize their government because they believe it's corrupt; is the only solution really 'Deal with it or get out of the country?'

What I said is something not a lot of people are outright admitting, but still seem to complain about: Content and support vs. subscription fees.

You can be sympathetic with how SoA and SoE are having troubles with their superiors and how they can't support the western servers. I'm not. That's me.

And as for the community being butthurt over many things, I still stand by that. The slightest suggestions eventually turn into flame wars, the slightest mention of someone complaining about person's job/class bursts into 'IT'S HIS PLAYSTYLE LEAVE HIM ALONE', among other things.


I'm pretty sure entertainment is the fundamental point of playing a game.

Oh yeah, and this is part of it. It's entertaining seeing how some people end up saying things like

Kinore hasn't had any tail since last Valentine's Day....
that can't even spell the name of the person they're flaming even though it's right in front of them.



That they at least have been trying to do things right for us is a helluva lot better than GMs who could care less.

I haven't seen them admit that they can't when they can't because of problems from above.

I can't answer everything you said in the last post, but I've covered what I could. This is so far off the topic of 'an expansion' already.

[Lyric]

Yes, people do get upset when they're told to do something a certain way when they have complete freedom to play the game however they like, Kanore. A lot of those threads you speak of aren't worded as "suggestions," but rather "play like this or gtfo."

People will always complain on either side of the coin, so there's no real point in trying to justify either side since both are 'butthurt,' as you so eloquently put it.

I do feel sorry for the GM's to an extent...but seriously, there's only so much leeway. Sonic Team really needs to get their act together before another expansion comes down the pipe.

[F-Gattaca]

This happened before. What makes you think it won't happen again?

Depends on when the expansion comes out. Sega seems to be trying to release things in a general wave when it comes to item quality levels. This is probably because if they didn't do that, there'd be no reason for them to have added a bunch of the A and B-rank weapons that they did for AotI.

We're slowly getting the 11*~12* from both AotI and Episode 1 as it is; when AotI came out, we were just getting into the 10*s, so A-ranks still had (and I argue that they still have) usefulness to the general populace.

Had AotI came out after players got all the Episode 1 content, not only would there have been no reason for those new lower-ranked items, but there would be nothing to look forward to from the Epsiode 1 player's perspective. (Then again, some of AotI's new features kind of blew it for Episode 1 players--specifically the inability to visit AotI player shops).

Now then.

Heh, Kanore, the way you replied to all those posts, it makes it look like I wrote them all.


What's wrong with calling myself a sheep and a sucker for ST? I'm dealing with the half-a-game they're giving me. Can I not say something about how the amount of content and support we're getting doesn't live up to the money we're shelling out? People who criticize their government because they believe it's corrupt; is the only solution really 'Deal with it or get out of the country?'

Except you weren't doing that; you only admitted to still paying for the game yourself AFTER your "rofl you're all butthurt sheep" bit. Your analogy doesn't work either; you were laughing at people who still think the game is still worth the $10 monthly fee (and money for future expansions).

That pretty much implies that you believe no one should be playing PSU, lest they be unenlightened plebians who can't think for themselves.

In your analogy, quitting PSU would actually be analgous to leaving the country. That's quite a bit different from someone who loudly complains about crap yet still plays the game or lives in the country without doing anything to try and change the conditions of where he lives, or the location of where he lives.

At least in the real world, people can take action to change things about the way their country is governed instead of sitting around bitching about how bad it is on an internet forum. This isn't always something that can be done in MMOs, even though devs really ought to listen to feedback from their players and take action accordingly.


And as for the community being butthurt over many things, I still stand by that. The slightest suggestions eventually turn into flame wars, the slightest mention of someone complaining about person's job/class bursts into 'IT'S HIS PLAYSTYLE LEAVE HIM ALONE', among other things.

Yeah, putting yourself above the PSU playerbase and calling them brainless followers of whatever Sega puts out sure is a 'slight suggestion.' Oh wait ... no it isn't. Based on how you behaved in this thread, I'm inclined to think what you believe are the slightest slights are actually quite abrasive.

[Ri0T]

Seeing as how a new expansion is the only way we will get any real new content, (besides what they spoon-feed us from the disc) I can see how people can get impatient about an announcement of a new one.

I don't know if I can have the sympathy for SoA that some others have. I mean, Sonic Team should be a subsidiary of Sega, not the other way around. Sega wouldn't have to take any crap from ST. It seems like SoA are actually the ones using ST as scapegoats, because ST have no real online presence.

[F-Gattaca]

I don't know if I can have the sympathy for SoA that some others have. I mean, Sonic Team should be a subsidiary of Sega, not the other way around. Sega wouldn't have to take any crap from ST. It seems like SoA are actually the ones using ST as scapegoats, because ST have no real online presence.

Sonic Team is a subsidiary/studio owned by Sega of Japan, i.e. Sega Corporation.

Sega of America is a division of Sega Corportaion. SoA doesn't own Sonic Team, although they have owned studios of their own in the past (don't know if they still do).

So yes, in this case, SoA and SoE do have to take crap from ST.

And you say ST has no real online presence?

http://www.sonicteam.com/

[CeruleanWitch]

I thought AoI was supposed to be the only expansion. Looks like I'll have to take everything said about PSU with a grain of salt.